Lost Our Minds |5| The Ascension

Chapter Twenty Seven: Ragnarok-Finally, A Familiar Face... Oh Shit

Thor and McKenzie were roughly shoved into a spacious holding area. A quick look around told them they weren't the first to be held prisoner here... and that some of the others had died long ago. Enraged, Thor tried to force his way out, throwing his shoulder at the door over and over. Unsurprisingly, it didn't budge. Evidently, this cell had been built to incarcerate stronger creatures than him.

"Hey, hey! Take it easy, man!" They both turned to see some kind of rock creature looking at them. McKenzie was briefly reminded of the Pyroviles, but the resemblance was minimal. This guy wasn't on fire, for one. "Over here. The pile of rocks waving at you. Yeah, I'm actually a thing, I'm a being." Thor and McKenzie shared a look. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Korg. I'm kind of like the leader in here. I'm made of rocks, as you can see, but don't let that intimidate you. You don't need to be afraid unless you're made of scissors." Korg smiled. "Just a little rock-paper-scissors joke for you." He gestured to a slug-like creature with a robotic exoskeleton. "This is my very good friend over here, Miek. He's an insect and has knives for hands."

McKenzie narrowed her eyes, recognising the species. "You're a Kronan, aren't you?"

Korg nodded, getting to his feet. "That I am."

"How'd you end up in here?" Thor asked. They started to walk, trying to figure out if there were any weak spots or potential exit routes.

"Well, I tried to start a revolution, but didn't print enough pamphlets, so hardly anyone turned up, except for my mom and her boyfriend, who I hate," Korg explained. "As punishment, I was forced to be in here and become a gladiator. Bit of a promotional disaster. But I'm actually organising another revolution. I don't know if you'd be interested in something like that. Do you reckon you'd be interested?"

As he spoke, McKenzie frowned, recognising the door they'd come in through. She sped up, her eyes widening as she found herself coming up behind Thor and Korg. "Okay, what's that about?"

Thor blinked, turning around. "Wait, how did you...?"

"Yeah, no, this whole thing is a circle," Korg informed them. "But not a real circle, more like a freaky circle."

"This doesn't make sense," McKenzie said. "By all reason, these people shouldn't know how to create a spatial loop, let alone have the technology to actually make one."

Korg nodded sympathetically. "No, nothing makes sense here. The only thing that does make sense is that nothing makes sense."

"Has anyone here fought the Grandmaster's champion?" Thor asked.

"Doug has," Korg replied. "Hey, Doug! Oh, right, Doug's dead. That's right, everyone who fights the Grandmaster's champion perishes."

"What about you?" Thor frowned. "You're made of rocks."

"Perishable rocks," Korg pointed out, just as a pebble fell off his shoulder. "There you go, another one gone. Yeah, no, I just do the smaller fights, warm up the crowd and whatnot."

"But surely you've seen this champion fight," McKenzie reasoned. "Any tips?"

Korg blinked. "Wait. You're not gonna face him, are you?"

She nodded. "Yes. We're gonna fight him, we're gonna win, and we're gonna get the hell out of this place."

Unfortunately, Korg wasn't convinced. "That's exactly what Doug used to say. See you later, new Doug." He walked away.

***

A few hours later, McKenzie was sitting against the wall, watching her friend as he prayed. It was a mourning prayer, and she was determined that no one would interrupt him as he tried to come to terms with his father's death.